


Not All in the Manual

by Nekopyo



Category: Subarashiki Kono Sekai | The World Ends With You
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-12-20
Updated: 2010-12-20
Packaged: 2017-10-13 21:12:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/141771
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nekopyo/pseuds/Nekopyo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kariya just got a new protégée. Now if only she'd stop asking him about everything...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Not All in the Manual

**Author's Note:**

  * For [darkfaerieclaw](https://archiveofourown.org/users/darkfaerieclaw/gifts).



> Special thanks for [Miarr](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Miarr), for being my beta for the story.

It had been a good day so far.

Kariya Koki was lying atop the AMX, staring at the clouds overhead. The last Game ended only two days ago, so he had at least five more days of downtime. It had been a good one, too. Kariya managed to keep his hunting ratio low—he tried to give Players a sporting chance, there were enough Reapers out for blood already—but not so low that the higher ups would get suspicious. Hopefully. Lazy, but not outright useless; that was the way to go.

Kariya took the lollipop out of his mouth. He had stopped smoking a few weeks ago, and recently started fighting the nicotine cravings with candy. It almost worked, but his desire for a cigarette still blemished an otherwise excellent day. Oh well. You couldn't have everything.

It was a warm day, just right for catnaps on roofs. He closed his eyes, and was about to doze off when his phone erupted into a cacophony of sound; all guitars and cymbals and an affront to ears everywhere. He should never have let the new guy set his ringtone—put a Reaper in a band and _oh no,_ of _course_ he knows more about music—but damn cellphones always gave him trouble. Kariya fished the phone out of his pocket and flipped it open quickly. Napping was right out, but at least it'll stop the damn noise.

The text message read: _Office. Now._ He didn't even have to check to know it came from the Iron Maiden. Anyone else would have bothered to use conjectives. Of course that also meant he'll have to haul tail, since keeping the boss lady waiting was a big no-no if you cared for your health at all. Kariya hardly ever talked to Konishi before she made Officer a couple of months ago, but she's been riding him hard ever since.

Flicking away the stub of his lollipop, Kariya stepped off the roof, letting the wind rush past him for a second before opening his wings. It had been a good day so far, but his intuition told him it was about to start being a bad one. It would probably start being a bad _week_.

*

The Reapers' headquarters was lavishly furnished—the Conductor certainly liked to live in style, since the office was an extension of his soul. Or was it a manifestation? Metaphysical stuff always gave him a headache, so Kariya usually tried to avoid thinking about it. As a general rule, Harrier Reapers stayed away from the office—this was Officer territory—except at the beginning of Games, and even that pretty much stopped ever since they started to hand out orders through cellphones. It's probably been at least six months since he'd last been here. Not that he minded—Kariya hated the place. It was like a bad nightclub, except snottier.

He'd hardly opened the door before Konishi looked up, gathering a stray lock of blond hair behind her ear. She smiled when she saw him come in, tight and controlled. "Good of you to arrive, Kariya. Have a seat."

She gestured to the couch opposite of where she was sitting next to a girl Kariya didn't know. The new girl was dressed like some sort of waitress, and was busy peeking at him over the cover of a magazine—the title read: _Ten Reaper Sports and You_. Kariya had a sinking feeling already—until they locked eyes. The girl gave a start and dropped the magazine. She might have blushed, but between her red hair and the bad lighting, he couldn't be sure.

Kariya sat down, his hands almost automatically reaching into his pocket—first for a cigarette pack he no longer had, then for candy when he remembered he quit—until he saw Konishi frowning at him for being fussy. He always got twitchy and irritable when he didn't have something to toy with in his hands, but making the Iron Maiden angry was worse. "Alright, Konishi, what is it you wanted me for?"

Konishi smiled again and placed a hand on the younger girl's shoulder. Kariya had a feeling that smile wasn't for him. "Yashiro, would you introduce yourself properly?"

The waitress gave him a small bow, her eyes darting between him and Konishi. "I'm Yashiro Uzuki.".

"Yashiro is a new recruit," Konishi continued the conversation smoothly. "And since she's only been a Reaper four days, I thought she might need someone to teach her the basics."

Kariya held out his hand. "Hold on, the last Game only ended two days ago. You're saying that girl—" he stopped, letting the rest of Konishi's sentence sink in. "What do you mean teach her the basics?"

"Well, it's not as though you're busy, right?" Konishi asked him, all politeness. He could have used that smile to burn rust off metal. "And since I saw your last Game score I thought you might be in a rut. Maybe going over the basics with someone new would invigorate you a little."

Ah. So that's what this was all about. Kariya could almost smile, except he didn't trust himself enough not to turn it into a snarl. She really got him with this one. He got up and shook the new girl's hand. "Great. Okay. Nice to meet you. I'm Kariya Koki, and although I don't want to sound rude," he helped the girl up, gently pushing her towards the door. "I'd like you to give me and Konishi a minute to talk a few things over." He herded the red-headed girl out, and shut the door behind her before turning back to Konishi, who looked at him as though he were the greatest comedy troupe in town.

"What the hell?" He was probably louder than he should have been, but Kariya was too annoyed to keep his voice in check. "I get that you're not happy with my Game score, but you could have just chewed me up like usual. What's the point of throwing some new kid at me?"

Konishi looked at him over the rim of her glasses, and he made himself simmer down. "Please, Kariya, this isn't some abstract plan to be petty with you. I meant what I said before—Yashiro has a lot of potential, and I want someone to teach her properly. Besides, let's both be frank: your scores are bad—" Kariya opened his mouth to protest, but she held up a hand. "They're _bad_ , Kariya, and you know it. Yashiro has lots of ambition, and no experience; you've got lots of experience, and no ambition. You're perfect for each other. You teach her how to be a good Harrier, and hopefully she'll be able to make you one yourself."

"This could work the other way, you know," Kariya still felt sullen, and just running away now and doing what the Iron Maiden wanted seemed wrong. "What if I make her more like me instead?"

Konishi's smile at him was like sunlight reflecting off a sword, all bright and shiny and totally cold. "Why, Kariya, are you saying you'll make things _worse_?"

Oh. Kariya could take a hint. He smiled back quickly, although it felt more like a rictus. "Nope. I was just kidding around. Don't worry, boss. Everything will be totally awesome." He felt behind his back for the door handle, and then he yanked the door open and bolted.

*

Everything is going to be totally horrible.

He found Yashiro Uzuki leaning against the side of the tunnel outside the office, and stopped to calm down a bit. It wasn't her fault she got thrown in with him, so there was no point in taking out his frustration on her. She probably _did_ need someone to show her the basics, especially if she became a Reaper without playing, which rarely ever happened—he'd have to ask her about that later.

He walked up to her and reached out his hand. "So, Uzuki, right? Let's get the introduction bit over. I'm Kariya Koki. I'll be teaching you all about the job from now on."

Uzuki shook his hand, though she looked rueful. "Look, I know you probably don't appreciate being stuck with an amateur like me, but I promise I'll learn as fast as I can, so—"

Kariya quickly waved his hand in dismissal, "Look, forget about that, alright? Tell you what, I'm hungry. You want some lunch?"

*

He took her to a small ramen shop in Dogenzaka. It wasn't much to look at, but the food was good. While they were waiting for their orders, Kariya figured he'd try to understand more about his new protégée, but before he could decide what to ask first Uzuki turned to him. "I was wondering, why did you and Ms. Konishi make such a big deal about me being a Reaper?"

The question caught him by surprise, mainly because he was still not sure how to ask her about it himself. Kariya looked at Uzuki for a moment, before finally asking, "You know how the Underground works, right?"

"Sure. You die and then you get to the UG, and there's a Game and some Reapers and Noise, right?" He shouldn't have been surprised that's all Uzuki managed to understand of the Reapers' Game, but just hearing her mesh all that up together still made him laugh, before he saw her glaring at him and stopped himself.

"Sorry, sorry. It's not quite that. Look, say that this is the Realground," Kariya held up his hand, palm downward, and then placed his other hand slightly above it. "And _this_ is the Underground. You're right that we're both dead, but it's a little bit more complex than that. See, when people die sometimes they get sent to the Underground. It's kind of like a sorting place—that's basically the Reapers' Game. Now, it doesn't happen to everyone—the Reapers' Game is basically giving you a second chance at life, but you have to really _want_ to be alive. Mostly it's young kids, or people with really big ambitions: folks who still feel they haven't got the most out of their lives. You follow?"

Uzuki nodded, and he continued. "Now, when Players finish the Game, they get a choice to go back to life, but sometimes they don't want to. When that happens, they either really die, or they become like me—Reapers. But sometimes, and this is really, _really_ rare, you get someone like you: someone who didn't play the Game in the first place, but still wound up in the Underground. I mean, I only saw someone like that once. Theoretically, it can happen just like the way Players end up in the UG, except in reverse: you don't want to get back to life, but—" Kariya stopped, belatedly realizing he'd blundered into a proverbial minefield. "Well, it's not really my business, I guess."

"No, it isn't," Uzuki told him flatly, and then, miraculously, their food arrived and saved him from any more awkward conversations.

*

It wasn't until they finished their lunch and Kariya paid for their food that Uzuki spoke to him again. He slipped his wallet back into his jacket when she spoke up, pointing towards his wallet. "If we're dead, where do we get money from?"

He stared at her blankly. "Konishi didn't tell you this? That's really basic stuff. I mean, what, did she keep you locked in back at the Office since you died?!" He stopped, "She did, didn't she? Are those the clothes you died in?"

Uzuki fidgeted in her seat, "Well, she did take me out a couple of times to see the Game, but mostly I had to stay in there and read stuff."

Kariya grabbed Uzuki's hand, pulling her out of the small restaurant. "Well, come on then. I'll show you where we get money, and then we'll go and get you something new to wear."

Fortunately, they didn't have to walk too far. Kariya dragged Uzuki around a street corner, stopping before a small and battered ATM machine, set inside a recess in the wall. The tiny machine was covered in graffiti, like any other part of the alley around them. Kariya gestured at it grandly, as though revealing some sort of marvel. "Well, what do you think?"

Uzuki looked at him as though he'd gone mad. "It's an ATM machine. Reapers take money out of ATM machines?"

"Can you think of a better place to get money?" Kariya smiled at her. "It's not a normal machine, though. See how there's no slot for a card?" He tapped the side of the machine, and then pointed down at the graffiti covering its base, "And look at the marking here. It's a special code, like the decals for the Players. This one makes it invisible to people in the RG."

Uzuki still didn't look convinced. "So, how do you get money out of it?"

"You've got your pin on you, right?" Kariya fished through his pockets for his own Reaper pin, a small black pin with a fanciful pattern, shaped like a bird of prey; Every Harrier had one. He pressed it against the screen of the ATM. The small screen came to life, and he tapped his selection. A tiny slot popped open, dropping a small stack of bills into his waiting hand. "Yours is still useless, though. Reapers get paid based on their performance in the Game, so your pin'll stay empty until after your first job. There's a couple of machines like this one spread all over town. I'll show you where they are later." He turned back to Uzuki, who was looking quizzically at her own pin. "Are you even listening to me, Uzuki?"

"I just wondered," Uzuki looked back at him, "how come we use pins? I mean, why?"

"Well..." Kariya, scratched the bridge of his nose. Uzuki had a real talent at throwing questions out of the figurative left field. "Pins are round."

He'd have bet money she learned that look from Konishi. It was downright withering. Kariya shrugged at her.

"I'm being serious. Pins are useful because they're small and round. We code stuff down on them, right? Well, coding is a lot simpler when you use a circle. I mean, some of the really complex codes don't necessarily use round shapes, but that's some high level stuff. Only the Conductor could write that. Theoretically. Maybe not even him."

Uzuki looked somewhat mollified, and Kariya decided to press his advantage, before she thought up a new question. "Come on, I bet you'll want some new clothes. It's on me."

*

After the shopping, Kariya took her to dinner in a small cafe' near Miyashita Park. It was a bit of a walk, but the owner always gave him a discount. Uzuki sat across from him, wearing a new sweater and skirt and looking very glad to finally ditch the waitress uniform.

"I'm surprised you didn't go for the jacket-and-slacks look." Kariya teased her. "It's almost mandatory for Reapers, you know."

"Why is that, really?" Uzuki crossed her arms in irritation. "We met a couple of Reapers at the 109, and they all wore so much you couldn't even see their faces. It's not like it even looks good." She looked outside, and pointed at another Reaper across the street. "Like that guy there, see?"

Kariya peered at the Reaper outside, happily sitting on a bench. "Actually, that's a girl."

She stared at him in amazement. "How can you tell?"

"Simple. I know her. Nice kid, too. She's been working for, oh, four years now. It might take you a while, but you'll learn to recognize everyone eventually."

"So why does she wear all that? I mean, it's not _that_ cold outside."

Kariya cupped his chin in his hand. "Most of the working Reapers go for the old cap-across-the-eyes look. You know, like drill sergeants in army shows? It makes dealing with Players easier for them, I guess."

Uzuki didn't meet his eyes. "Is it hard? Dealing with the Players, I mean?"

"It's a living." Kariya shrugged. "Except not really."

She looked at him for a long moment. "Um, Kariya," she said. "How long exactly have you been a Reaper?" When he quirked an eyebrow at her, she looked embarrassed. "Because, I mean, you know a lot about it, so..."

"Remember when you told me your past was none of my business?"

Uzuki looked so despondent, though, he decided to cut her some slack. "Well, I've been a Reaper a while, okay? I'm one of the oldest folks around. That's part of the reason I'm the one training you. I know who's who and what's what."

"Really?" Uzuki smiled back, her mood restored, "So could you tell me something I've been dying to know?"

"Shoot."

"Who's that guy with the cap near the back? The one that's muttering to himself and writing on a napkin?"

"What, _that_ guy? He's a weirdo. You stay away from him."

*

Kariya hated to admit it, but Konishi was right. He'd been training Uzuki for a little over a day, and she had some real talent. He's never seen someone learn to fly properly so quickly, and she's already managed to bind simple Noise into pins. At the rate she was learning, she'd be ready for the next Game as a full Reaper.

She'd better be, too. It annoyed Kariya to no end, but Konishi was right about another thing: if he was going to be paying for two people, he really would have to shape up. At the rate he was spending now, he might actually have to—dare he think it— _make an effort_ during the next Game. Kariya silently cursed evil librarians everywhere, and a certain Iron Maiden in particular.

He'd built up a good mental litany, too. It took him almost twenty curse words to notice Uzuki sat down next to him on the rooftop, idly scratching a newly-made Popguin under its beak. She had a certain look in her eyes, which Kariya had come to associate with her asking difficult questions. Uzuki had pestered him so often in last twenty-four hours, he already felt he was turning into a Reaper encyclopedia. The girl was insatiable.

"I was wondering, how come Noise attacks Players, but they don't attack us?" Uzuki wasn't one to disappoint. Leave it to her to ask something so hard to explain. Kariya ran a hand through his hair—not for the first time today—trying to find the right words to answer.

"Well, imagine you had a big magnet," he started, making shapes with his hands for emphasis, "and you dropped it into a bucket of nails, see? It's a little like that."

Uzuki gave him a flat look. "Clearly, Kariya, you have a gift for words."

He stuck out a tongue at her. "Shut up. It's a great explanation. Don't blame me if you don't get it."

"So the Noise is a big magnet, then?" She quipped, still looking like she didn't believe him.

"No. What? Why would you even say that? _You're_ the big magnet." Kariya shook his head at her in mock reproach, "See, Noise is made up of all sort of stray bits of thoughts and emotions—like a pile of nails. Now, normally they just gather around in the Noise plane, like a big bucket. But when you—that's the magnet—code them into pins, you use those pieces of thoughts, but with a much clearer shape, and that defined shape makes the nails stick to the magnet. Q.E.D." He crossed his arms smugly. "You see?"

Uzuki scratched her head. "I sort of get that you had an explanation there, but it went over my head. Sorry."

Kariya shrugged, "Well, you can't win them all. C'mon. I'm hungry, and there's a nice Mexican restaurant near Spain Hill."

*

"You know, it's not a bad thing, but you sure are gung-ho about being a Reaper."

They were sitting inside the small restaurant, near the window. When he spoke up, Uzuki looked up from her Chilli Dog and gave him a quizzical look. "What do you mean? Isn't this normal?"

Kariya gave a half-shrug. "Normal isn't really the word to use when you talk about Reapers in the first place, but it's still different from most people. Most of the new Reapers are still pretty attached to their old lives, so they tend to just hang around the RG, pretend they never became Reapers in the first place. It usually takes them at least a week to get the basics down. You just threw yourself at it."

Uzuki cradled her chin in her hand, looking thoughtful. "It's just... I want to do a good job, you know? I used to have this crap job, and it was totally worthless. Now I'm doing something that's totally important, right? I mean, we're working for Ms. Konishi, and we're basically helping people be reincarnated, right?"

Kariya looked at her quizzically, "Who told you we're working for Konishi?"

"Aren't we?"

He snorted. "Of course not. Granted, we do take instructions from her, since she outranks us, but in the first place Reapers work for the Conductor, and he works for the big guy upstairs."

"What do you mean 'the big guy upstairs'?"

Kariya gave her a long look. "We're Grim Reapers. We're sorting souls in the afterlife. I mean the Big. Guy." He pointed upwards. "Upstairs."

Uzuki looked nonplussed. "You're serious? I mean, that's kind of..." Her mouth worked silently for a few moments. "Wow."

Kirya bit into his hot dog, talking around a new mouthful of meat. "Well, it's an over-simplification, but yes. There are a couple more steps in the corporate ladder, so to speak, but the Conductor is working with all the religious, halos-and-harps folks."

Uzuki sat quietly for several minutes.

He could see _that_ look in her eyes again. "I know you've got a question. Out with it."

"It's just..." She looked unsure how to phrase herself. "Well, if we're really working for, you know, _angels_ and _God_ and stuff... What do people outside of Shibuya get when they die?"

"They get their own thing." Kariya leaned back, pushing his empty plate aside, "You haven't left this ward since you became a Reaper, right? We can't leave anymore. Every major city has its own UG, with its own Conductor, and Reapers and everything. It helps if you think of it as different branches of the same company."

"So, where does the rest of Tokyo go when they die?"

He shook his head. "You're not listening. I said 'every major city'. Shibuya acts as the Underground for all of Tokyo proper. I mean, Japan has a pretty low mortality rate, and Shibuya even moreso. Do you really think there'd be enough Players to host a Game almost every other week from just Shibuya?"

Uzuki bit her thumb in thought, "We really can't leave the city?"

"Nope. Sorry. Reapers are part of the scenery. We're like furniture." Kariya fished a handful of bills from his wallet, placing them on the table. "Why, you're from out of town?"

Uzuki nodded. "My family moved here a few months back. I'm originally from Nerima. I just figured I could go back sometimes."

He wasn't sure what to say to cheer her up, and the conversation died down. They left the restaurant in silence, and didn't talk until they reached the nearby ATM, where Kariya drew some more money. He finally turned to Uzuki. "Say, Uzuki, your house used to be near Miyashita, right? You want to go check up on your family?"

She looked surprised he suggested it, but shook her head. "No, not really. There's not much left for me to check up on." She stepped away from him and stretched, spreading her wings. "Come on. This conversation's getting mopey. Let's go back to training. I want to be ready for the next Game."

Kariya couldn't help but smile. "You're right. It's only three days from now. We'll have to shape you up."

She was grinning now, too."Kariya saying to work hard? I can't believe it."

"Damn straight I am. You know how much money I'm spending on you? When you start earning, I'm going to have you pay for everything."

He took off, spreading his wings and flying upwards until the narrow alley opened into an expansive landscape of rooftops. Uzuki followed behind him, calling for him.

"Come on! That's not fair. It's not my fault I can't pay for things now."

He slowed down, and allowed her to catch up. "Tell you what: Let's make a bet. Loser has to buy the winner lunch. How does that sound?"

And against his previous expectations, he had a feeling the next couple of days would be pretty good after all.


End file.
